Wednesday the company announced capital improvements made at the Faircrest and Gambrinus steel mills are finished. The investments include an open-die in-line forge press at Faircrest, and an intermediate finishing line and a second induction thermal treatment line at the Gambrinus plant. The projects are part of $85 million of investments made by Timken during the past couple of years.

Still under construction are two other Faircrest projects. Timken expects to have a second station for refining ladles operating in May. A vertical jumbo bloom caster is expected to open in spring 2014.

The combined projects are designed to help Timken increase steel production and meet customer needs.

“With customers foremost in mind, we are investing more than $500 million in our Ohio steel plants to help us meet their needs,” said Rich Kyle, group president for Timken’s steel business.

BIG SQUEEZE

Customers were invited to tour the Faircrest plant on Wednesday and see the in-line forge in action.

Cranes pull up glowing steel ingots and place them on a rolling mill. Ingots slide along the mill toward the forge. The 3,300-ton forge press squeezes the 7-ton ingot to begin forming what Timken calls a “sound-center engineered bar.” After an ingot runs through the forge, it moves along the rolling mill where it is sized to meet specifications.

Squeezing the ingot helps eliminate voids, air gaps and hairline cracks in the bar. As imperfections are eliminated the bar becomes stronger, said Joe Moline, vice president of steel manufacturing.

Moline joined Timken in 1984 and worked on the Faircrest construction. The mill was designed to produce 500,000 tons of steel per year, but by 2008 it shipped more that 1 million tons of steel. Faircrest has topped that amount each year since.

Improving operations and efficiency helped Faircrest boost production, Moline said. But in recent years Timken has moved to improve capacity by expanding operations. Moline said equipment upgrades will help Timken maintain production and meet customer demand.

Timken said new technology in the Gambrinus intermediate finishing line increases efficiency, advances testing quality and cuts processing times. The second induction thermal treatment line, when used in conjunction with current thermal-treat equipment, helps increase capacity by 20,000 tons per year.

JOB PROTECTION

The string of investments also helps the steel operations become more competitive, Timken officials said. The changes “are also about job security, as well as the company’s continuing commitment to Stark County,” a spokesman said.

After setting steel production records in 2011, the company saw demand slip in 2012. Reduced demand led to layoffs last fall. About 160 workers are waiting for a call back.

Bringing the new operations on line isn’t expected to create new jobs for the laid off Steelworkers represented by the Golden Lodge Local 1123. Current employees are expected to operate the new equipment.

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Timken has projected that steel production will rise in the third quarter.